


how they fall for you

by schoblake



Category: 1917 (Movie 2019)
Genre: Fluff, Happily Ever After, M/M, Marriage, No angst to be found, Self-indulgent fluff, Tom Blake Lives, Tom is a Sweetheart, Will has PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:55:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,577
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23335726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/schoblake/pseuds/schoblake
Summary: If you leave me at the alter, you have to harvest the sours this year. xxI love you.Yours,TomApril 10th, 1920.Will & Tom's wedding day
Relationships: Tom Blake/William Schofield
Comments: 10
Kudos: 73





	how they fall for you

Will awakens to the sunrise. Dust particles filter through the open window from the weak morning light. He rolls over, reaching out for the familiar soft and warm body, but is left cold and alone. He panics for a moment, the memories of leaving a blood-soaked Tom flooding back to him before he takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, whispering the familiar mantra to himself.  _ Tom is alive. Tom is safe. It wasn’t my fault.  _ He repeats the last line begrudgingly, but Tom insists he says it, so he does. Will sits up and stretches, and a small smile finds its way to his lips.  _ Today is April 10th. Today is our wedding day.  _ It wasn’t a legally binding marriage of course, but Tom insisted on a ceremony and reception. Will would’ve been happy with a private exchange of rings, but he wanted to make his boy happy. And Tom had somehow tricked him into being slightly excited for it. They were to have a small gathering in the orchard- just his and Tom’s family. The last time he saw Sarah and his nieces, they couldn’t stop gushing over the dresses they had sewn for the wedding. He stretches, finally standing up, and walks towards the dresser. To his surprise, he finds a small wrapped package and a note. A small chuckle escapes his lips.  _ All this time and you still find a way to surprise me.  _ Carefully, he opens the note, making certain to not rip any edges. This would be going in his blue tin, and he wanted it to be perfect. 

_ If you leave me at the alter, you have to harvest the sours this year. xx _

_ I love you. _

_ Yours, _

_ Tom _

Will’s heart swells. He unwraps the package hastily and unlike himself, desperate to get to the thoughtful gift. Inside, lay an olive-colored necktie. He is puzzled for a moment until he touches the fabric. He would know the feel of that uniform anywhere.  _ The uniform we met in.  _ A blush rises to his cheeks. The only fond memories he had of the war were of  _ Lance Corporal Thomas Blake,  _ his right-hand man. Will checks his wristwatch. Not realizing how late it had gotten, he quickly gets dressed. Tom’s mother, Mary, had made him this suit. It fit perfectly. The soft charcoal color matched perfectly with the necktie he had just been gifted. _ I can’t wait to be married to you, Tom. My blushing bride.  _

~

From the moment the sun rose, Tom had been out in the orchard. He thought he would be feeling much more panicked about all the little details, but as he looked at the trees he and Will were to get married underneath he felt nothing but calm. Joe came bounding out of the old farmhouse, calling to Tom for help. Together, they carried the wooden arch and placed it between two of the oldest and most beautiful cherry trees. He steps back to admire their work, and touches a branch.  _ Peak bloom. It’ll look like it’s proper snowing later.  _ His mum calls him into the house to get cleaned up, as Joe sets up the rest of the ceremony. There were chairs and flowers to be set up, but he had to trust Joe with the rest of the decor.  _ What a scary thought.  _ After a quick bath, he steps back into his childhood bedroom where he had slept the night before. His mum had laid out the creme colored suit he was set to wed in. Will had teased him many a time about being his blushing bride in white, but Tom liked tradition. Plus, it matched the bow-tie his mum made from his own uniform. On the underside of the tie, there are rust-colored splotches. No matter how he tried, he could not get the blood out. He knew Will would feel guilty if he saw this, but Tom saw it as a symbol of strength. He and Scho went to hell and back and still ended up where they are together. Downstairs, he hears Sarah and the girls arrive, asking where Will is. Tom gives himself one last look in the mirror before going downstairs to greet them.

~

Against all odds, Joe had done a tremendous job setting up for the occasion. Will was certain even Tom would be impressed. White roses were laced into the wooden arch, and cherry blossom and rose petals donned the aisle Tom was set to walk down any moment. He felt nervous, like a schoolboy with a crush. Giddy, even. He walked slowly down the aisle, taking in the sights of his family, new and old, before standing in his position. Mary put the record on the record player before sitting back down excitedly.  _ Tom’s cue.  _ Will closed his eyes a moment and took a deep breath, and when he opens them he sees Tom walking out of the house and down the aisle. The creme-colored suit fit him to perfection, but the cowlick he desperately tried to keep down had sprung up again. On his chest, near his heart, a purple medal. Tom’s favorite bit of tin. Will thought he looked perfect. As Tom approached he looked nervous, but as he got closer Will realized it was tears in his eyes, not worry. The cherry blossoms were almost blizzarding around them, making the scene all the more lovely. All of his apprehension and worries melted away when Tom smiled at him. That smile was the only thing that got Will through his time in the trenches. It was the only thing that mattered. As Tom grew near, Will grabbed his hands tightly.  _ I missed you,  _ he mouthed to him. Tom just smiled wider in response. 

Will turned towards their family, all tearing up at the sight of them. 

“Thank you all for coming. We cannot tell you what it means that you love and support us, despite the popular view on our relationship. We would not be here if not for you. Tom and I have both prepared some vows, but this should be rather quick, and then we can get to the delicious cake Mary made inside.” Will says, smiling at his future mother-in-law. Will turned towards Tom, his heart beating faster than ever. He took a deep breath and started to read his vows. 

“Thomas Blake,

I wish I could say I loved you from the first time I laid eyes on you. But if I’m being honest, I thought you were bloody irritating. You followed me around the trenches like a lost puppy-dog, always asking me questions and telling your dumb stories. Nobody wanted to be my close friend, and I theirs, so I had no idea why you wouldn’t leave me alone. But when you were sent on a supply run for three days, something stirred inside me. I didn’t know quite what it was then, but I missed you. And when you returned, each story and question felt less like a chore and more like a privilege. When I thought I lost you, I didn’t know how I was to carry on. I had watched many friends die in the war, but the thought of never seeing you again was too much to bear. I wanted to give up. The only reason I didn’t is because of you. When I got the letter from you, I cried. I had been in the war for two years and lived through some of the most terrible battles. But not once had I cried in front of the other men until I found out you were alive. I will carry the guilt of leaving you every day until the moment I die. But luckily, I also get to carry your hand in mine. As unorthodox as our relationship is, there is no one else I would rather wake up to every morning. You are an enigma, Tom. Look at the cherry blossoms, love. Look how they fall for you. I absolutely love you, Thomas Blake, with all that’s left of my heart and soul.” 

William finished, his throat thick with emotion. He looked up to see Tom crying quietly while smiling. 

“How the hell am I to follow that, Schofield?” Tom said, voice watery and full of tears. “ I do have the honor of saying I have loved you since day one. You were bloody irritating too, but I couldn’t get enough of you. I wanted to know every in and out of Lance Corporal William Schofield. I thought my efforts were fruitless, up until I wrote to you to tell you I was alive. I didn’t think you cared for me more than any other friend, but I had to write to you. I had to hope. All I thought of when I was recovering was of you. How many stupid stories about the hospital I would have to tell you. How much time I would have to write to you when I got discharged. My life changed the day I received your correspondence in the mail, and you have been changing it ever since. There is no person I would rather be married to. I love you, William.” 

They exchanged the brass rings that had been hidden in their breast-pockets, but William stopped Tom when he leaned in to kiss him. With a small smirk, Will grabbed Tom’s waist and whispered in his ear before leading a passionate kiss. 

_ “Age before beauty.” _

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic- I have no idea how to use tags or anything, but I hope you enjoy!


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